We recently connected with Sean Friesen and have shared our conversation below.

Sean, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Looking back, do you think you started your business at the right time? Do you wish you had started sooner or later

It is never easy to start a business and there will always be obstacles at first. I wish I had overcome whatever it was that was holding me back sooner but when I finally did get around to starting my kids apparel business I suppose the time was ripe. We had just relocated to Austin Texas from Silver lake California with our young son and I was able to grow my small business from the garage with a small loan from my mother-in-law. Originally orangeheat was conceived of as a greeting card business back in Silver Lake but once we got to Austin and my son and I were exploring the play-scapes together, I noticed that I wanted to upgrade the tees I was seeing on the kids, make them more artful and modern.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

From the beginning I knew that I wanted orangeheat to be a sustainable apparel brand rather then yet another fast fashion flash in the pan. The made in the USA aspect has always been important as well as the use of compostable packaging. I print on natural organic cotton tees and since the pandemic their popularity has grown which has been inspiring to see the shift in customer consciousness. The element of comfort is also important to orangeheat, as I brand the tees without labels so they are tagless. I know my price point might be higher than some customers are willing to pay, but I have heard from many customers that the tees are cherished and shared amongst siblings and close family friends. The organic cotton tees are made to last and become favorite tees of many children, which is the mission of the brand and gives me a great sense of pride and purpose when I hear this repeatedly from my customer base. I like to think of these tees as small batches of cookies that I bake with love for my customers and their families. I’m committed to maintaining this aspect of high quality as the brand continues to grow in the coming years. orangeheat has sold apparel in large stores like Nordstrom’s and the Bonne Marché in Paris, but I am most interested in being widely available in boutiques across the world, helping other small businesses to grow along with mine. My customers are extremely important to me and I always try and exceed their expectations, and appreciate the reviews that everyone takes the time to write about their experience with orangeheat.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

I believe by providing your customers with a positive experience and high quality product, word will spread. The golden rule of treating people the way you would want to be treated, if there is a delay with their order I let them know and I take actions to get their orders to them as quickly as I can. Shipping the majority of orders same day has been very powerful and becomes tricky during busy wholesale periods but I always try and knock out the orangeheat site orders the same day I receive them. I have been pretty solid at getting out 3rd party site orders same day also, and as the brand continues to grow this is something that will always be a challenge and a priority maintaining the inventory across many sizes to keep the orders flowing.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

The pandemic was brutal for many, many businesses and I saw first hand lots of my wholesale accounts close as retail was hit particularly hard. You develop relationships with other small business owners and to just not hear from some of them anymore was sad. I was fortunate that my customers rallied to my site and kept me going. The lesson of the power of direct to consumer was not lost on me during that time, and I have since made many improvements to the orangeheat site which has hopefully shed many of the friction points that customers shy away from. I choose a site template that was extremely mobile friendly and boasted a navigation menu that requires only one thumb, so the customer can surf the site with a coffee in one hand. The direct to consumer site is the dream of every online business owner and has become quite challenging with the splintering of the social media landscape, but it is so important and needs constant attention and innovation to stay on the customers radars.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://orangeheat.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/orangeheat/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/orangeheat
• Other: https://www.pinterest.com/orangeheat/_shop/

Image Credits
Sean Friesen